Music helps people in many ways. For children with ASD, musical therapy is risk-free, and there are lots of activities to engage kids and adults alike in this beautiful experience. People within the spectrum find a release to their struggles with music, besides helping them interact in a different way to the world around them. And it helps them control accessory conditions, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Music therapy can bring many benefits with infants and teens with autism, improving skills like social interactions, verbal expressions, behaviors, motor skills, self-confidence, among others. And this helps handle the most common issues related to OCD when it’s part of the spectrum diagnosis.
How does the therapist work with children and teens?
The certified therapist will evaluate the individual; however, sometimes it can be a group evaluation. Knowing the patient helps to develop a plan with objectives and final goals, according to the particular needs each. They will use a wide array of musical features, considering various instruments and techniques to engage them in the activities.
One of the first steps is to improvise, let them react to the music and see their expressions: it is a good way to evaluate their behavior to different sounds, instruments, and songs. Many specialists prefer using percussion instruments or even singing to children expecting different reactions and categorizing them. That allows them to have a starting point when it comes to therapy.
After the kids are used to the sounds, she or he can change the style and apply new techniques to incentivize the participation. This therapy is well known because it is not conventional, using only sound, dances, and instruments it can generate a reaction that will increase the patient’s confidence, teamwork, and communication skills. But, how does this pair up with children suffering from OCD-like behavior? Let’s break it down here.
Benefits of the music therapy
Social interactions
Music therapy can engage the little ones to work and enjoy around others, because usually, music creates a reaction, helping them share the experience with their peers. Therapists agree that they answer more willingly to the different activities if these are paired with a prefer instrument or music genre.
Use the singing to communicate will start a new way of communication that can translate outside the therapist’s room, even without music. For others, it is an excellent way to share a common ground and share experiences and tastes. In other words, music will unite kids and teens within the spectrum without the strange and uncomfortable aspects of social interactions. And this is fundamental for individuals that have OCD as an accessory condition. As many spectrum therapies involve structure, they could try to pair that up with their social skills. Giving them a tool to handle social interactions will ease them into connecting with others, making it easier for them to bypass some of the difficulties that arise in socialization if you have OCD.
Behaviors
Many people within the spectrum can show different behaviors, and these can be hard to face for parents and family, but music therapy has been proved an excellent way to control them. Besides music and sounds are a great way to prepare he or she to noisy environments and spaces. After one-hour session, they tend to be relaxed and feel at ease with the ones around them.
This is fundamental for obsessive-compulsive disorder patients, as they tend to stick into repetitive patterns that don’t allow them to interact freely with others. Music, as an evolutive therapy, can change that, helping them understand that they don’t need to stick to strict routines to interact with others.
Anxiety
Kids within the spectrum are propense to feel anxious many times during the day, but music is a fantastic way to make them feel calm with a different stimulus. Many parents noted their children relaxed by simple listen to their favorite song or music, or even just with one hour of therapy. Remember that the treatment can be taken to the house, music is good for everybody at home!
For OCD patients, anxiety over their routines being disrupted is a problem. That’s why having instruments at home it’s perfect, as it’s a way to have an outlet to frustration, anxiety and other negative emotions. It allows them to occupy their minds and bodies in something other than the stressing element, helping them to relax more easily.
Have fun
This therapy can bring happiness, because of all the benefits stated above, there will have a calm reaction to the music, and even they will feel happy to listen to it. For some cases is playing their favorite instruments that will put them at ease, and that is the best part of the therapy, parents can continue it at home and every day can turn into something more manageable!
Remember, music is an effective way to reach a new aspect of their personality, and help them with their different conditions. Therapy will always be good for them, but music therapy is another level to help them to improve their skill while having fun with the new experience.
Come to Autism Soccer, where we offer excellent programs for the development of your kids and a place for them to be comfortable and happy. All this with the help of experts that can guide them!
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